Mary Poppins

Mary Poppins definitely isn't Julie Andrews. She's a bit abrasive, but still caring, just in her own way. The bits that weren't in the movie (the first few chapters were, roughly, plus the bird woman) were charming. The scene at the zoo, the gingerbread's stars, and the bit with Maia were great. The chapter about John and Barbara (there are two more Banks children!) was sweet but sad. Very episodic, but no less enjoyable.

My first time reading any of the Mary Poppins books and I thoroughly enjoyed it! I went in with a good understanding of P.L. Travers after reading Valerie Lawson's “Mary Poppins, She Wrote” and I think that made me appreciate this book more than I expected, considering I was reading it for the first time as an adult. There's something oddly satisfying about how curt and sharp-tongued Mary Poppins is. And the stories are really delightful, with a few that also made me a little sad (like “John and Barbara's Story,” oh my gosh).

Bonus points to Sophie Thompson, for one of the best and most energetic audiobook narrations I've ever heard! I felt like a kid hearing bedtime stories!

“Feed the birds. Tuppence a bag. ...” We spent a mixture of time in the Sophie Thompson Audible and reading the text in our Kindle eBook. While it was a revisit for my oldest (11), it was a new adventure specifically for my Princess (9), and the others were able to listen in (6, 3, and 1). My youth only had the Disney film as far as I remember it and I am an avid fan of Julie Andrews. I see the connections to the book and even more so to the newer film Mary Poppins Returns, although I have yet to see Saving Mr. Banks. Mary Poppins is a very harsh character but so is life... It is a bit magical, fantastic, and page turning. Barbara and John are absolutely necessary characters and the movie misses them completely.

We own vintage hardcovers with European spines, Kindle eBooks, and Audible (+) for listening. This was a Memoria Press Classical Core Curriculum Third Grade and Simply Classical 5/6.